Star Wars: Rogue Squadron

• Release Date: 1998 12
• Genre: Simulation
• Style: Flight Combat Sim
• Similar Games: Star Fox 64 [Players Choice] (Nintendo 64), Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire (Nintendo 64), Star Wars Arcade (Sega Genesis 32X), WarHawk (PlayStation), Star Fox (Super Nintendo Entertainment System), Starfox (Commodore 64/128), WarHawk (Commodore 64/128), Star Fox (Atari Video Computer System), Warhawk (IBM PC Compatible), Star Wars: Rogue Squadron 3D (IBM PC Compatible), Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire (IBM PC Compatible), Star Fox 64 (Nintendo 64), Star Wars (Arcade)

Game Description

Star Wars: Rogue Squadron lets you strap into the cockpit of an X-wing fighter as you attempt to lead your squadron to victory over the mighty Empire. Set between Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back, the game spans sixteen 3D levels in a variety of locales including Mos Eisley, Kessel, the Imperial Construction Yards, Mon Calamari, and Corellia.

You'll also be given the chance to fly four additional ships (plus some hidden ones) during the course of play: an A-wing, Y-wing, V-wing and snowspeeder. While the ships all use laser cannons as their primary weapons, they also carry secondary weapons such as photon torpedoes or concussion missiles, depending on the craft.

After listening to your objectives, you'll be sent to a planet's surface (there are no space battles in the game) to carry out the mission, whether it's protecting Rebel bases or ships from Imperial attacks, rescuing downed crews, wrapping up AT-ATs with tow cables, or simply mounting an assault on the Empire's key bases. Since you won't be flying solo during the missions, your wingmen will keep you apprised of the situation at all times with radio chatter (over 30 minutes worth of speech has been included).

As the founding members of Rogue Squadron, Luke Skywalker and Wedge Antilles are the two primary characters you'll play as during the game. This 128-Meg cartridge supports both the Rumble Pak and Expansion Pak for feedback and Hi-Res mode, respectively, and includes three data files to record your initials and progress. The game will also keep track of the medals you receive, which are based on how well you perform during each mission. Earn gold medals to unlock secrets.

Roots & Influences

Star Wars: Rogue Squadron draws its influence from the opening level in 1996's Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire, LucasArts' first title on the system. Players began the game piloting a snowspeeder as they set out to eliminate Probe Droids, AT-ATs and AT-STs from the surface of the planet Hoth. For many critics, the biggest problem was that this sequence lasted only one level, so the remainder of the game was a disappointment in comparison. Star Wars: Rogue Squadron takes the idea behind the first level of 1996's game and expands on every feature, allowing for more freedom of flight, additional ships to fly, and multiple objectives across a variety of planetary surfaces.

Review: Overall

No matter how you feel about Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire, you have to admit the first level is impressive. The ability to drag AT-ATs down with your snowspeeder's tow cables (in complete 3D) is enough to make any red-blooded fan twitch with excitement. Star Wars: Rogue Squadron offers the same type of experience, but with significantly more flying room, different planet systems and the ability to pilot five Rebel ships, from the A-wing to the Y-wing.

Let's get one thing out of the way: the game is not a flight sim in the vein of LucasArts' X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter on the PC. All battles are on planet surfaces, there is still a restricted amount of space to fly around (think of each planet as a fish bowl -- a large fish bowl, but a fish bowl nonetheless), and the emphasis is on arcade-style shooting action not unlike Star Fox 64.

That's not to say it is an easy game, but it is different from what most fans may be expecting. The default camera angle is positioned just behind the ship, which is the easiest to play from, but you can also switch to a cockpit view or various third-person perspectives. Those owning an Expansion Pak will want to snap it in immediately -- the visuals are dramatically improved and the action is much more enjoyable.

Targeting enemies involves aiming an optional green cursor that appears directly in front of your craft. Shooting down TIE fighters is somewhat difficult at first, however, since you have to lead your fire in their anticipated direction; there is no automatic targeting or lock-on feature. While the controls take some getting used to, the first level is designed to ease rookie pilots into the game.

The opening stage has you flying across Luke Skywalker's home planet of Tatooine, noting such details as Jabba's Palace, Luke's farm, Mos Eisley, even Stormtroopers and Tusken Raiders milling about! This mission is a simple matter of destroying a few TIE fighters and Probe Droids around the city.

After you complete it, you're free to return to improve your time and kill count or just to check out the scenery. The cartridge automatically keeps track of your statistics for each mission, and medals are awarded for destroying a specific number of enemies, protecting one of your wingmen from an attack, or being accurate with your shots. Earning medals is key to unlocking the game's hidden features and helps extend the replay value.

Mission objectives offer a broad variety of challenges, including defending vulnerable ships from bombing runs, protecting cities from Imperial attacks, and destroying structures such as radar dishes, missile turrets or shield generators. As you make your way through the 16 missions, your objectives will become more and more complicated, and there are usually several different battles happening at once.

Not only does this give the game an epic feel, but it heightens the sense of urgency. It's hard not to get excited when you see your wingmen engaging the enemy just so you can take out a specific target! Factor in the constant radio chatter and rousing orchestral soundtrack, and you have a game that effectively draws you into the Star Wars world.

Review: Enjoyment

Star Wars: Rogue Squadron should please fans of the movies (meaning every male on the planet) as long as they don't mind arcade-style play mechanics. While there is a healthy amount of fog on some of the planets, no multi-player support and a lack of space battles, the overall presentation is so well done that it's easy to overlook some of the faults.

Review: Graphics

The high-resolution graphics are beautiful, although there is a significant amount of fog used to hide draw-in. Yet the amount of detail is impressive (shoot at the water and little puddles emerge; wisps of smoke trail from damaged fighters; numbers are visible on certain crafts; and various other nice touches). In addition, some of the missions are at night with great lighting effects!

Review: Sound

The sound effects will have you smiling from ear to ear. Fans will instantly recognize the "whap, whap" of lasers as well as the high-speed whine of TIE fighters whizzing by -- the sound effects are right on the money. The amount and quality of the voice acting will also surprise a lot of Nintendo 64 owners. The actor voicing Luke Skywalker sounds like Mark Hamill (he's not) and even Han Solo and Chewie make a cameo! The strange thing is that all of the ship descriptions, biographies and mission briefings are in full speech! Is this really necessary? Nope, but it shows that a lot of effort went into the sound. By the way, you'll also be treated to renditions of John Williams' music from the films.

Review: Replay Value

Each mission ends with a breakdown of your performance. This includes the following: completion time, enemies destroyed, accuracy, friendly saves and bonuses collected (there are hidden power-ups on some levels). You'll know exactly what you need to qualify for the next highest medal, and all of your stats are saved to cartridge. Still, it's too bad there isn't any multi-player mode -- that alone would have raised the score.

Review: Documentation

The manual is in full color and includes a mini-comic in the back. You'll also get biographies for all of the principle characters in the game.

Production Credits

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